


Beneath The Spotlight

by slayxmish (castiellovesthewinchesters)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Drummer - Freeform, F/F, F/M, M/M, Music, artist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-19
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2019-02-04 04:53:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12763584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/castiellovesthewinchesters/pseuds/slayxmish
Summary: Castiel Novak is a painting student at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver. Dean Winchester is a college drop out hiding behind a second-hand drum kit for his best friends’ band. Castiel gets dragged out one evening by his brother and only friend to see Vancouver’s “next up and coming band” when Castiel meets Dean for a night that he swears he’ll never forget. Over the course of six months, Castiel has found himself in situations where Dean Winchester takes up the thoughts in his head—and the spaces in his bed. Eventually, they go separate ways when Dean decides to follow his bandmates to California, where the band finally makes their big break. Time passes, and it becomes over a year until Castiel sees Dean again: sitting in a bar in Vancouver with a cheeky grin on his face, and a drink with his name on it.





	Beneath The Spotlight

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! It's me, Meg, using a different pseudonym, but one that is used everywhere so that you guys can easily find me. I'm excited to bring this fic to you, as I've been working on it for quite some time, and it's not finished but I have a good head start on it, and I feel like I need to start sharing it with you!
> 
> One thing you need to know about this ficlet is that it has many audio/visual stimulants, so there will be pictures throughout, in some chapters, and there will be MANY links for the songs that the band is playing. It is not mandatory for you to listen to them, but I _highly_ recommend you do! I hand-picked these songs specifically to their singer and find that each song has meaning for that particular person. 
> 
> **_ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS_**  
>  Wow I have a handful of people to thank for this one. Thank you to Chloe, who was the first to read and gave me such great feedback (even if it was mostly gibberish <3). Thank you to my followers on instagram who eagerly anticipated this fic and supported me. And of course, thank you to my betas: Toni, Katie, and Annie, who were amazing once again.  
> I love you all.  
>    
>  ** _*DISCLAIMER*_**  
>  We are going to pretend that every song that the band is playing is their own, unless they’ve **specified** that it’s a cover. I myself, am very musically inclined, but I don’t play drums so if anyone does and can give me some pointers, that would be great! Also, while I am Canadian, I have never been to Vancouver—although it’s on my list! I did lots of studying for this fic, trying to make it as geographically accurate as I could so if anyone spots any mistakes, please correct me!
> 
> Much love! :)

Castiel wipes his paintbrush clean before dipping it into the lightened raw umber acrylic paint and brushing it onto the canvas. He wets his brush and brings it back into the paint to thin it out, and moves his brush elegantly, connecting the lines. He grabs a palette knife and adds titanium white, mixing the two colours together and adds a dollop of violet until he is satisfied with the taupe colour he’s created. It's quiet in the studio. He enjoys working on his own time where he can be alone with his thoughts and not have the bustle of his fellow classmates distract him. He grabs a round tipped brush and begins to create the base colour of his lilacs, when his phone rings.

He lets out a short sigh and a tight eye roll as he places his brush back into his water, and wipes his hands on his apron before pulling out is phone, frowning at the small thumbprint of paint residue on the bottom corner of his phone. He swipes the call open.

“Inias,” he greets his best friend. He grabs a clean paintbrush and plays with the dry bristles to keep his hands busy, holding the phone between his ear and his shoulder.

“Hey Cas! What are you doing?”

“Just in the studio,” he says lightly.

He sits down on his chair and swivels himself around.

“Oh shit, sorry. I can call back later.”

“No it’s fine,” Castiel pulls back his sleeve and glances at his watch, the paintbrush in his hand nearly knocking his glasses off. “I was about to start packing up soon anyways. Did you need anything?”

He shakes his sleeve down and listens.

“Yeah, well—I know you probably won’t want to come, but Gabriel texted me earlier today and told me about this band playing at The Backstage Lounge tonight.”

Castiel hums. His brother often goes there, and tries to drag Castiel along every time. Now it seems Gabriel is using Inias to make him want to go out more than he never does. He rubs the bridge of his nose with his free hand and suppresses a sigh.

“These guys are supposed to be pretty good,” Inias continues. “I can’t remember what their name is but they’ve been doing lots of shows around town lately.”

Castiel drops his hand to his side and stands up to grab his paint water.

“I don’t know Inias,” he says as he walks over to the sink and dumps his water. He begins washing his brushes, squeezing out any excess paint and watching it travel towards the drain before drying them on his apron and walking back to his easel to pack up the rest of his things.

“Come on, Cas. You _never_ come out.”

“Yeah and there are reasons for that.” Castiel put his paints and brushes in his drawer and made sure it was locked before taking off his apron.

“Ah, Cas don’t worry—that won’t happen again, okay?”

Castiel can tell Inias is getting desperate.

He stands before his station and sighs again. Anxiety crawls up his throat, but he chokes it down.

“Ugh, _fine,_ Inias. I’ll go out tonight. But if things start to get shady, I’m leaving.”

“The Backstage Lounge is a pretty chill place, Cas. I know you’ll like it.”

“Okay.” Castiel can hear how unconvinced he sounds, and he shakes his head even though he knows Inias can’t see him. “What time are we supposed to be there?”

“Band is going on at eight, so whenever really.”

Castiel grabs his coat from behind his chair and shrugs it on, walking towards the studio doors. “Where are you right now? Are you at the university?” Castiel grabs the door handle and pushes it open.

“Yeah, I’m outside your—” Inias cuts himself off as Castiel turns out of the studio to find Inias standing in front of him. “Hi.”

Castiel gives him a deadpan expression. He hangs up his phone.

“Were you outside this whole time?”

“Maybe.”

Castiel rolls his eyes. He starts to walk down the empty corridor towards the main exit and Inias follows. When they reach the doors, Castiel can see that outside the sun is shining, for once. It's low, and beginning to set but the red hue makes the city vibrant. Vancouver is bleak and grey most days.

“I need to get back to my place and shower before we go out,” Castiel mentions, looking at his paint-stained hands and noticing a smear of paint crawling up beneath his sleeve. He glances around as they step outside and can see traffic backing up along Granville Bridge and he checks his watch again. 5:33 PM. He starts making his way towards the bus stop, knowing damn well it will likely take more than half an hour to get to his apartment. He sighs.

“Don’t worry,” Inias notices him. “We’re not going to take that shit bus back to your place.” Castiel stops in his tracks and looks back at Inias earnestly.

“You didn’t,” he starts.

“Oh, I did.” Inias pulls out a set of keys out his jean pocket and dangles it in front of him. “My uncle let me borrow her for a couple days.”

Inias shoves Castiel’s shoulder and turns him towards the water, where Granville Island rests its shoulders against, to see a white jet boat tied down to the dock.

“There she is!” Inias cries. “I’m gonna have to convince him to let me keep it.”

Castiel huffs out a small laugh in disbelief. Inias walks past him and unties the ropes.

“Get in!” he says. Castiel obliges and steps into the boat.

Soon they are pulling away from the dock and making their way across False Creek towards Castiel’s apartment complex. They are there faster than Castiel has ever been and he thinks to himself that he’s going to need to invest in getting a boat because the half hour bus ride twice a day to make it across the water in less than ten minutes by boat is staggering. He _could_ take the ferry, he remembers—but then he’d have to walk, and Castiel hates being late as it is, so walking would only make it more strenuous on himself.

They pull up to the docks and tie down, with only a five minute walk from Castiel’s apartment, the humid air making the evening hot on Castiel’s back. It’s the fastest Castiel has ever been home.

“So I was thinking,” Inias starts as they walk up to his apartment building, “that we could get there at a decent time and grab a table, get some food, what do you think?”

Castiel nods and opens the main door to his apartment.

“I suppose that’ll work,” he replies.

They take the elevator up to the 14th floor and walk up to Castiel’s place. He slides his key in and opens the door, watching as the orange sunlight pours in from the skyline view of his living room, the light glinting off his stainless steel appliances in his kitchen, and shining off the glass table top. It’s a view Castiel knows he’ll never get tired of looking at.

Inias makes himself comfortable on the couch while Castiel makes his way to his bedroom and strips out of his sweat dampened clothes. He walks into his ensuite bathroom and starts the shower, the water instantly hot. He takes his glasses off before he climbs in.

 

When he emerges, he hears Inias talking to someone who would be no one other than Gabriel, his brother, who also happens to live with him. Castiel puts on a clean pair of boxer briefs and loose shirt. He finds a nice pair of dark jeans and pulls them on. He leaves his shirt untucked, and figures to wait and see what his brother is going to wear out before they leave.

He finds the two of them sitting on the couch watching some inappropriate cartoon and doubling over, laughing. He walks into the kitchen instead, and grabs himself a glass of water.

“Cassie, can you grab me a beer?” Gabriel calls to him.

Castiel opens the fridge. “There is none.”

“What?! I thought I just bought some!” Gabriel gets off the couch and stands beside Castiel, who is undoubtedly looking at a case of beer. Gabriel scoffs and grabs a bottle. “You ass.”

Castiel smiles and turns away from his brother, walking over to sit next to Inias, and watches as Gabriel twists off the bottle cap and comes around couch. Castiel tries to trip him.

“Fuck off, Cas.”

Inias laughs and kicks Gabriel in the shin.

“Jesus, what is it? ‘ _Pick on Gabriel Day_ ’ today?” Gabriel huffs as he sits down, and takes a long swig of his beer.

Inias and Castiel look at each other and snicker. Bugging Gabriel has been their thing since they were kids. They’ve been friends for as long as Castiel can remember. Throughout the trials of high school, they’ve been by each other’s sides. But Inias has also been Castiel’s only friend. Sure, there were people who were friendly to him, and that he enjoyed being around, but none of them were _really_ his friends. He just knows how lucky he is to have someone like Inias.

They sit and watch TV until Gabriel says it's time to get pretty and leave. Castiel settles for a dark grey dress shirt. He tucks it in and leaves the top buttons undone, while rolling his sleeves up. He threads a leather belt through his jeans and puts on his black leather shoes. He opts for contacts instead, but hangs his glasses over the opening of his shirt, and stuffs his contact lens case into his pocket. He runs a quick hand through some pomade to set his hair and sprays a bit of cologne on his neck before grabbing his coat from behind his door.

“Damn baby brother, you’re looking _dapper!”_ Gabriel teases him when Castiel leaves his bedroom. He wraps an arm around Castiel’s neck and tugs him in for a jostle. “That grey really brings out the _fascinating_ colours of your eyes!”

“Fuck you—at least I don’t look like a lumberjack,” Castiel shrugs out of him and pushes him away. Gabriel laughs.

“Hey, the ladies love the plaid.” Gabriel pretends to lick his fingers and proceeds to rub them over his nipples. “I can’t keep them off me!”

Inias laughs at him and shakes his head. Gabriel stops touching himself and scratches at his neck beard. Castiel just raises an eyebrow at him.

“What! It’s true.” Gabriel holds out his arms as if to make a point.

Castiel snorts while he opens the front door, and they make their way down the hall, his fingers jittering by his side all the way down the elevator.

 

Castiel finds himself sitting inside The Backstage Lounge a mere twenty minutes later, with having taken the jet boat across the water and docking it under Granville Bridge, they sat themselves at a table not far from the stage. The noise of jumbled conversations surrounds them and Castiel checks his watch. It’s just after 7:00 PM. He looks around the dimly lit room where he watches the bartender pour drinks for waiting customers and servers.

A waitress eventually comes around and takes their drink orders and gives them all menus. Inias orders a rum and coke, while Gabriel sticks to beer. Castiel orders himself a glass of water, and his brother stops the waitress and orders him a vodka slime to go along with it. Castiel grimaces.

“Don’t worry, they’re better than they sound,” Gabriel assures him.

The music playing through the sound system is an unfamiliar alternative/rock-sounding band that Castiel doesn’t know, and if he was honest, doesn’t quite like—so he’s hoping that the band playing tonight is better than the one on the speakers.

He mindlessly flips through the menu and decides that a salad is probably his best choice. The waitress returns with their drinks.

“Cas, get something that _isn’t_ a salad for once in your damn life,” Gabriel bashes him. “Live a little! Be bold! Be wild!”

Castiel shrugs a shoulder and sips on his water.

“Hey! I know!” Gabriel pipes up, tapping the back of his hand to Castiel’s elbow. “Why don’t you get the salad _without_ croutons? That should liven it up a bit!”

Inias laughs, taking a sip of his drink.

“Shut up Gabriel,” Castiel shakes his head, a smile lifting at the corners of his mouth.

Inias and Gabriel order wings, burgers, and fries, while Castiel sticks to his salad. He does order it with croutons, _and_ a toast. See? The toast is something new, he considers. Gabriel urges him to try the vodka slime that’s sitting in front of him, and the green drink taunts him. He sips at it slowly and decides that it isn’t as bad as the name, and decides to keep it.

They talk about university and upcoming exams over their food. Castiel is fortunate, with being a full time art student, the only midterm exam he has to worry about is Art History, and he knows it’s something he wouldn’t even have to study for. The rest of his exams are project based, and one of them is still-life painting, which he was working on earlier today.

“Okay, so who’s the guy that did that one painting of the girl with the diamond earring or whatever?” Gabriel tries.

“You’re lucky I have a very broad understanding of art history to have even the _slightest_ inkling of who the fuck you’re talking about,” Castiel yells over the music. He is on his fourth vodka slime, and so far his water remains hardly untouched. “And it’s the _pearl_ earring,” he adds so matter-of-factly.

“Then who is it?” Gabriel challenges him.

“Johannes Vermeer,” Castiel answers boldly, mimicking Gabriel’s tone. He knows he’s right. “1665, oil on canvas.”

“You’re wrong!”

“I am not!” Castiel argues, taken aback.

“It’s that Bernini guy.” Gabriel jabs a finger at Castiel’s general direction, for reasons Castiel cannot think of.

“What the fuck—Gabriel,” Castiel sits back in his chair and holds his hand out in front of him with frustration. “Bernini was a _sculptor._ And fuck you! You’re not even an art student!” He huffs out a breath. “And it’s _Vermeer!”_

Gabriel laughs into his beer.

“Oh brother, you are _such_ a fucking nerd.”

Castiel shoots a glare at him and downs the rest of his drink, pretending not to care.

 

Just before 8:00, Castiel can see the band members setting up their instruments. It’s all shadows and some bustling around. There are some people that start filing down to the floor in front of the stage. Castiel has to give his brother some credit; they have pretty good seats and Castiel can see the stage perfectly, even with the crowd forming ahead.

“Showtime!” Gabriel cries out. He orders a round of shots for the three of them and settles chair while he waits for them to arrive.

“I don’t really need any more liquor, Gabriel,” Castiel reminds him. “I think I’ve had enough now.”

“You’re not even drunk!” Gabriel exclaims.

The music playing in the speakers stops playing, and the lights on the stage slowly fade on. The crowd starts to clap and cheer as the frontman starts to play a guitar [r](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LDOUFJVNmg)[iff](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LDOUFJVNmg) . The whole band comes together seamlessly. Castiel even finds himself bobbing his head with the beat. The singer comes centre stage, and is a girl with red hair. Her voice is powerful, and beautiful. Castiel can’t take his eyes off her as she bounces between verses, and belts out each note effortlessly. It’s not much of Castiel’s style of music, but Inias was right—the band is good, and it’s only the first song Castiel hears. He watches as the guitarists play off each other, the bassist nodding along. He can’t see much of the drummer, the lighting on the singer is too much contrast for him to get a good look, but he likes their drumming.

“ _Explain to me this conspiracy against me. Yeah…and tell me how I lost my power, oh yeah._ ”

The song comes to an end and the crowd screams and cheers. Gabriel puts two fingers in his mouth to whistle and even Castiel claps. The waitress returns with their shots, and somehow Castiel has another vodka slime in front of him. He frowns at Gabriel but takes it anyway.

“Cheers brothers!” Gabriel says as he picks up his shot. The three of them all down them all at once and Castiel has to stifle a cough.

“What was _that_?” he asks, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and chasing his shot with his drink.

“Tequila,” Gabriel says smugly, wiggling his eyebrows at him. Castiel tries not to grimace.

The band starts up their next [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnVOw-nECaw), and it’s a blonde girl in the spotlight. She carries a white electric guitar and plays the opening chords.

“ _Somebody mixed my medicine…_ ” she sings. The drums come in and it’s a good beat. “ _…so hold me tight!_ ”

The rest of the band comes in and the crowd goes wild. The song is inappropriate, in Castiel’s opinion, but she sings it well. It’s more grungier than the first song, and a bit heavier. The lyrics are something about receiving the wrong drug, and Castiel isn’t sure how he feels about it. Something about a tiger in the room and a baby in the closet? What is this song even about?

He decides he likes the first one better, but the girl sings it well.

As the song nears its end, the crowd is jumping to the beat, and waving their hands up in the air. It comes to an abrupt halt and everyone screams. The band is good, Castiel admits to himself as he takes a drink. Inias is cheering loudly and clapping. The band takes no break in between this and the next [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu_ZvXq6u9o); this time, a tall skinny guy with short light brown hair takes the spotlight. Castiel can see the girl with the red hair take the spot at the keyboard as the song comes together. There is another guitarist over to the side with dark hair that is in his own world, rocking out to the music and playing along with character.

The man singing has a light voice, and Castiel quite likes it. The style of the song is much different than the first two, and he enjoys this one the best, he finds. He taps his feet along with the beat, and drums his fingers against his glass.

Halfway through the song, the band joins together and sings “ _oh woah, oh_ ” and it gets the audience going, everyone yelling along. The beat of the drums are solid and it makes Castiel feel so good. He can feel it in is chest as it flows through him. The man sings over the band’s chanting, and then the song quiets down for a moment before the chorus comes up again, and Castiel even finds himself humming along with the tune, bobbing his head to the beat.

“ _I’m a thief, and I’ll take you!_ ” the man sings as he finishes the song. Everyone cheers, and Castiel yells out in his applause.

The stage lights up and Castiel can finally see each of the members, aside from the drummer, who remains seated behind the drum set, a cymbal getting in the way of his face.

“How's it going Backstage Lounge!” the blonde girl yells into the microphone. “I’m Jo Harvelle, and we’re Beneath The Spotlight!”

The crowd screams out; Castiel claps along and Gabriel whistles.

She continues, “By now you’ve heard a few completely different styled songs, and I’ll be honest—we’re a bit of a weird group.”

Some of the crowd laughs, others yell “fuck ya!” and whistle.

Jo chuckles with them before she explains, “We’ve got a lot of different styles and we thought instead of trying to find a style we could _all_ agree on, we would bring something unique to the band, which would be ourselves. It sounds kinda cheesy when I put it that way, but we’re a talented bunch—and I’m not just saying that. We all sing, we all play various instruments and we all write our own songs. We’ve got a good show set for tonight, and we even have a couple covers just for fun, so let’s get to it!”

She steps back from the mic and the crowd cheers. The man who was just singing steps into the mic. His guitar swings on his shoulders and he rests his hand against the strap.

“I’m Adam Milligan, and I thought I would take a second to introduce the rest of the band here for you guys,” he pauses to point, “To my right, with the fiery red hair, is the lovely Charlotte “Charlie” Bradbury on lead vocals, keyboard, and a little guitar as well.”

Charlie gives a shy wave and stands behind the keyboard and the audience applauds and whistles.

“To my left,” Adam continues, “on rhythm guitar, back vocals, and even some keyboard action is Mr. Aaron Bass.”

The man with the dark hair waves and takes a small bow and everyone cheers for him.

“He’s good with his fingers, ladies—I should add,” Adam says almost inaudible and he starts to laugh. Castiel sees Aaron rolling his head back and turning his body away from the audience, shoulders shaking with laughter.

“Next to Aaron is our very sexy, very mysterious, Halifax born bass player Benny Lafitte!”

Everyone goes wild, and Benny gives a small salute to the crowd and places his hands on his bass guitar.

Adam quirks up a smile. “He sings too, ladies. He sings, too.”

Some women scream out dramatically for attention and Castiel snickers, rolling his eyes.

“You guys know Jo, and you know me. But who you _don’t_ know is the man you’ve all been waiting for. The man that without him, we would cease to be. He is our glue, he is our brains, and he is our fearless drummer, Mr. Dean Winchester!”

The drummer finally stands up to wave at the audience, his drumsticks still in his hands, and Castiel stops breathing. He stares at the man. His sandy hair is spiked and pushed to the side, his scruff traces his jawline, down his neck. The crowd screams in praise and Castiel finds himself unable to take his eyes off of him. There is sweat beading down his forehead and he can see it dripping down his neck, and Castiel just wants to lick it. He finally lets out the breath of air he was holding in and takes a drink of his water that sat untouched for ages and has now become lukewarm and stale tasting.

Dean sits back down and Castiel curses the cymbal for getting in his way.

* * *

 

* * *

 

“Like Jo said, we’ve got a great set for you guys tonight, and we hope you enjoy it. Here’s our next song called [Fire](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ue0DCRtvtyA)!”

Dean starts off the song by tapping his drumsticks together and rolls into the song. Adam sings and plays the lead guitar while Jo and Aaron play the riffs. Charlie plays the violin setting on the keyboard. It’s very upbeat and has the entire crowd jumping along. Castiel can’t take his eyes off of Dean Winchester. Every once and a while when he hits the cymbal, Castiel gets a glimpse of him.

The whole band sings, “ _Fire_!” and it’s hard not to sing along. Castiel tries to focus on each band member as they jump along with the crowd. He starts to clap with the song, and decides that _this_ one is his favourite.

The song comes to a halt as it finishes, and everyone yells and claps.

“Thank you,” Adam says. “This next song is gonna be taken by my wingman over here, Aaron. He’s got a song for you guys.”

Aaron steps out from his corner of the stage to take the centre.

“Thanks Adam,” Aaron pauses, “This one is a little bit slower than what you’ve heard tonight, and I hope you guys like it. It’s called [Nirvana](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lv679SxziHQ). And no, it's not about the band.”

People in the crowd chuckle and whistle. Aaron counts into the song as the band starts. Castiel enjoys it instantly. Jo wasn’t kidding when she said they all have different styles, and he thinks that it makes them unlike any band he’s ever heard.

Aaron’s voice is soft and husky, blending perfectly with the song. He hits higher notes than Castiel wouldn’t have expected from him, and he can hear some people scream as the chorus starts.

“ _Will you take me to Nirvana? I don’t think this will last, but you’re here in my arms…_ ”

“They’re fucking good, eh!” Gabriel yells over to him.

“They are,” Castiel agrees. He taps his fingers on his lap. He takes a large swig of his drink and can start to feel the buzz.

When the song ends, Castiel finds himself cheering the loudest from their corner of the bar.

“Thanks you guys,” Aaron says bashfully.

“How about Aaron, you guys!” Jo takes the mic. The crowd screams. “This next song is one that I’ve been working on for a while, and I’m gonna let the band take a little break and it’s just gonna be me for this song, I hope that’s okay. It’s called [Ghost](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mgwOSXTrNQ).”

Jo sits on a stool in the middle of the stage, her white electric guitar in her lap. She picks at her guitar, creating an low and quiet atmosphere that’s new to the scene. It’s a slow song, and it’s quite beautiful. The rest of the band members sit in the darkened areas of the stage and Castiel can see the outline of Dean’s shoulders behind the drum kit.

“ _I swear I hate you when you leave, but I like it anyway…_ ”

“Isn’t that the truth,” Inias says, taking a drink. By this point he’s moved on to beer, and he tips it up in cheers before he sets it back down.

Castiel nods in agreement, but if he was being honest, he has no idea what Inias was talking about. Castiel hasn’t had much for relationships, aside from a few, but he pretends to go along with it.

When she finishes, she stands up and takes a small bow while the audience applauses her loudly, whistling and screaming. The rest of the band comes up and gets back into position. Charlie takes the spotlight and is at the key board; she counts in for Adam to start [playing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEpMj-tqixs). It’s slower too, and also has an ambient feel to it. Charlie’s voice fills it perfectly.

“ _Setting fire to our insides for fun…_ ” Dean starts to lightly tap a cymbal, building the song up. “ _…collecting names of the lovers that went wrong, the lovers that wrong._ ”

It crashes down and Dean rolls the drums through a repetitive pattern; Charlie plays solid notes on the keyboard; Adam plays the lead electric guitar while Aaron plays another part; Jo is focused on some percussion to fill in with Dean; Benny rocks his head as he plays bass.

“ _…and you caused it._ ”

Castiel is enjoying himself. The song ends after a roll of the drums and he finds himself clapping before it’s even finished, Gabriel whistling between his fingers.

“Thanks everyone,” Charlie says. “I think it’s Benny’s turn, isn’t it?”

“Oh, I believe it is,” Adam taunts into his mic. “Give it up for our bass man, Benny!”

The crowd cheers and Benny comes in, giving everyone a small wave.

“Alright you guys. Calm down,” Benny jokes. “Here’s one for ya. It’s called [Suburban War](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNdqoQWz34E).”

Adam starts playing the opening of the song. Benny comes in with his bass, and Dean begins on the drums. Jo and Adam play their guitars, and Charlie is on the keyboard still, filling the void with ambience. Benny’s voice is airy, but deep. It’s unlike any of the other members’ and Castiel finds that he likes it. Everyone in the band sings in the back along with him.

The song picks up and Dean starts drumming faster, with more complex patterns, it builds and builds with the band and Castiel rocks himself forward to the beat.

“ _All my friends, they don’t know me now…_ ”

The crowd is jumping along until the song ends, and it erupts throughout the Lounge.

“Thank you,” Benny says deeply.

“Give it up for Benny!” Adam yells. “Now. We’ve got a treat for you guys. He doesn’t sing much, and he doesn’t have his own song to play for you yet, but I know he will soon. Singing a Beatles cover, let’s give a big hand to our drummer Dean Winchester!”

Castiel freezes. He watches as Dean stands up and walks around the drum set. He stands in the middle of the stage, with a mic already in his hand. Dean is tall, with broad shoulders, and he just might be the most beautiful thing Castiel has ever seen.

“Uh, thanks Adam,” Dean says shyly. His voice is husky all on its own and Castiel tries hard not to swoon. He takes a drink of his vodka slime. Dean clears his throat. “This is one of my favourite songs, and I hope you like it. It’s called [Something](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjIdpxwm2zc).”

Dean opens his mouth and starts singing and Castiel’s jaw drops. Charlie and Aaron play two separate keyboard parts and it’s just the three of them together. Adam comes in with the guitar and Benny plays the bass between the verses. Dean walks around the stage through the next verse, the spotlight following him. He brings himself behind the drum kit and clips the mic to his mic stand while he lightly hits a cymbal and slowly rolls the drums.

“ _You’re asking me will my love grow…I don’t know, I don’t know._ ” He drums perfectly and the crowd cheers loudly. “ _You stick around now it may show…I don’t know, I don’t know._ ”

The song goes into an interlude and it’s melodic and perfect, and Castiel can’t stop staring at Dean, whenever he gets a glimpse of him. It unfortunately comes to an end, and Castiel claps and yells loudly. _That_ has now become his favourite song, he decides.

“How about Dean Winchester everybody!” Adam calls out. The audience screams in response. Dean stands up and gives a bashful wave and smile before hiding himself behind his drums. “We’ve got a couple more songs to do—this has been a lot of fun, you guys are awesome, and we can’t wait to come back here again! This one I’ll be taking the reins and I think Charlie is gonna play some harmonica for us. We hope you enjoy! This is [California On My Mind](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJnSZWL8RYY).”

Adam sings and plays his guitar, “ _Give me a lake that I can dive into, bury my head in the shit at the bottom. Fuck today, fuck San Francisco, fuck California!_ ”

Dean hits the drums and Charlie comes in with the harmonica, and Castiel smiles. He likes it. The song is upbeat and the crowd is jumping with the band. Benny is playing an intricate bass line and having a hell of a time, swinging himself around and dancing. The whole band is dancing, now that Castiel looks. Even Dean is rocking out on the drums, smiling and swaying in his seat, his shoulders bouncing.

“ _I realized I never gave you a chance…I realize I never gave you romance_.”

In the middle of the song they all sing some “ooh’s” and Castiel finds himself singing along, even though he knows he probably sounds terrible, with not being able to hear himself properly. He doesn’t care. A smile stretches wide across his face and he lets himself feel the music.

The song ends and Castiel cheers along with the rest of the audience. Gabriel and Inias are yelling words that Castiel can’t even understand. He laughs and yells too.

“Alright, time for some _real_ fun,” Adam chuckles into the mic. “Here’s a good old tune, our last song of the night. I know you all know it. I need everyone up and singing this song. Thanks for coming out tonight, you’re all amazing and we’ll see you next time. Dean! Take it away!”

Dean starts a fast paced drum [beat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJnSZWL8RYY).

“Are you ready Aaron?” Adam says.

“Uh huh!”

“Benny?”

“Yeah!”

“Charlie?”

“Okay!”

“Alright Jo, let’s goooo!”

The guitars come in and Castiel recognizes the song instantly—an old rock tune he remembers Gabriel playing when they were kids. They all start to clap along and sing. Castiel even dances a bit.

“ _Oh I see a man in the back as a matter of fact, his eyes are as red as the sun! And the girl in the corner that no one ignores, ‘cause she thinks she’s the passionate one! OH YEAH!_ ”

Castiel hasn’t felt this good in forever, god. He feels good. Maybe it’s the alcohol, but he doesn’t even care.

“Ballroom blitz! Ballroom blitz!” the crowd screams along. Suddenly Castiel, Gabriel, and Inias are on their feet, jumping to the beat. It’s the most fun Castiel has had in what seems like forever. They all sing along with song until their voices run hoarse.

Castiel watches Dean as he rolls the drums and he can’t take his eyes off of him. He swears he can see his sweat gleaming and dripping each time Dean moves. It’s the hottest thing Castiel has ever seen in his life. He can really start to feel the alcohol now that he’s up and moving and he laughs to himself. The song comes to a sharp end and everyone screams so loud, Castiel is sure his ears will be ringing for days.

“Thank you Backstage Lounge! Goodnight!” Adam yells over everyone.

“Thank you all for coming and have a good night!” Jo takes the mic.

“We’ll see you next time!” Charlie waves to everyone.

“See you all later! Party at Benny’s!” Aaron jokes.

“What!” Castiel can hear faintly behind Aaron.

“I’m just kidding, thanks you guys!” Aaron says before he gives a wave.

“See you guys, thanks for coming,” Benny says gruffly into the mic.

Dean steps around from the drums and waves. He doesn’t say anything and Castiel frowns at the missed opportunity to hear his voice again.

“Was that a fucking show or what!” Gabriel yells across the table as they sit back down. Castiel’s heart is racing. “What’s with your face?”

“What?” he turns towards his brother.

“You look frazzled.”

“I’m not _frazzled,”_ Castiel lies. He looks around the room for solace and decides he needs some air. “I’m gonna go outside for a bit.”

He stands up and can hear Gabriel telling Inias, “He’s frazzled.” Inias laughs.

When Castiel steps outside, the air is much cooler than it was when they arrived, and the sky is black, the smog of the city blocking any chance of seeing the stars, but he knows the sky is clear. He breathes in and leans against the exterior wall of the Lounge. There are other people standing outside smoking, and Castiel doesn’t care. He half wishes he had something to occupy his hands with. He left his phone inside so he crosses his arms and just breathes.

It takes him a moment to realize that he’s outside without anyone he knows and anxiety starts to creep up on him. He’s usually smarter than this. He starts to look around aimlessly, and considers going back inside, if at least to just grab his phone so that he wouldn’t look like a complete loner outside, when his eyes stop on Dean Winchester standing off at the corner of the Lounge.

He’s surrounded by his other bandmates and a few women who talk to them, high shrieking laughter coming from the fangirls. Castiel notices Dean take a drag of a cigarette and his sudden attraction to him diminishes slightly. Dean passes it over to Charlie who inhales it and passes it around. It takes Castiel a few moments to realize that it’s _not_ a cigarette. The band shares the joint openly and even offers it to the women standing with them who take it willingly. He pretends not to hear the conversations near him.

“—no but seriously, you guys were _amazing._ How long have you been playing together?”

“—can I touch your arms, they must be so big. All that drumming…”

He hears Dean laugh anxiously, “I’m good doll, thanks.”

The girls are wasted, and annoying, Castiel concludes. He picks at his thumbnail and ignores them. Only when he sees someone move up beside him, does he look up. He tries not to choke as Dean Winchester leans against the wall right beside him.

“Do you mind if I stand here?” he asks Castiel. “I’m not gonna lie those girls are just…”

Castiel nods and clears his throat. “No worries, go ahead. It’s not my wall.”

Castiel stuffs his hands into his pockets and glances down at his feet before looking out ahead at the city beyond them. He can see Dean in his peripherals. Dean hums a laugh and lights up another joint, sucking it in and leaning his head back against the wall to swallow the heat before blowing out his air almost clean. Castiel looks over to him when Dean holds out the joint in front of him in offering. Castiel considers it, and decides he’s probably never going to see this man ever again, and he takes it. He pulls a long drag from the joint and stifles a cough before handing it back to Dean.

Even in the dim outdoor light, Castiel can see how gorgeous Dean Winchester is. His nose is straight, and freckles dance across it. His eyes look dark in the light, but Castiel swears they’re green. There’s still some sweat on his neck and Castiel pretends not to get hot from it. He came outside to cool off, dammit.

They share the joint back and forth until it’s at its grubby end and becomes unpleasant. Dean tosses it to the ground and steps on it. Castiel can feel the high mixing with his liquor buzz and he sighs, leaning his head against the wall.

“It’s good, eh?” Dean says, grunting as he repositions himself against the wall.

Castiel only just realizes that they’re both sitting on the asphalt, their legs spread out in front of them and Castiel laughs.

“Yeah, it is,” he finally says.

Dean holds out his right hand in introduction, “Dean Winchester.” Castiel takes it and the grip is firm and Dean’s hands are large and solid.

“Castiel Novak,” he replies.

“It’s nice to meet you, Castiel Novak.”

Castiel pauses after their hands separate before he says, “You guys were fucking awesome in there by the way.” He points behind him with his thumb.

Dean chuckles. “Thanks, man.”

Castiel nods, settling his hands in his lap. They sit there for a while, in silence, only listening to the people around them who, Castiel is grateful for, aren’t paying them any attention. After a few moments, Dean stands up and brushes his ass off. He holds out a hand to Castiel, and Castiel glances up at him, taking it; Dean pulls him up effortlessly.

“Hey listen,” Dean starts. He clears his throat. “There’s uh—there’s gonna be a party back at _Benny’s—actually._ Aaron wasn’t kidding.” Dean lets out a laugh. and then says, “Would you want to come?”

Castiel stares at him.

“Uhm, a party?”

“Don’t worry, it’s not gonna be insane or anything. Just a few people. Play some games and hang out. It’s cool if you don’t want to.”

“No!” Castiel says too quickly. He knows he’s not thinking this through—but he’ll be damned if he never sees Dean again. “I’ll come.”

Dean cracks a smile. “Cool,” he says shyly. He kicks a toe at the ground looks at his feet. “Uh, we’re probably gonna head out soon. Did you want to catch a ride with us or…?”

Castiel looks back to the front door and then explains, “My brother and my friend are inside, I’ll go let them know. And I’ll just come with you—we didn’t drive.”

“Okay. I’ll wait for you out here then.”

“I’ll only be a minute,” Castiel promises. His heart is racing. What is he doing? He doesn’t do things like this.

He finds Gabriel and Inias still at their table.

“There you are!” Gabriel says, holding his hands out in front of him. “You left your phone, we were wondering where—is that weed I smell? Cas, did you—did you smoke a joint?”

“With Dean Winchester, yes.” Castiel is blunt. Gabriel gawks at him.

“Wha—”

“And he’s invited me back to his friend’s place for a party and I said I’ll go,” Castiel talks over his brother. He grabs what’s left of his vodka slime and downs it.

“You—you’re going to a party?” Gabriel raises his eyebrows at him.

“Yes, I thought I made that clear.” He sets his glass back down and wipes his mouth with his hand.

“Cas you—you _never_ go to parties! Not since—”

“I know Gabriel,” Cas cuts him off sharply. “Not since what happened last time—but this isn’t last time and I—look, he’s waiting for me outside, I have to go!”

Castiel grabs his phone from the table and stuffs it in his pocket. He goes to turn away but is stopped by Gabriel’s hand around his elbow.

“Cas, wait!”

Castiel turns to his brother.

“What?”

“Just—” Gabriel stops himself. “Are you sure you don’t want us to come with you?”

“I’ll be fine Gabriel,” Castiel shrugs out of his brother’s grasp. “I’m not a child.”

“Don’t be like that, I know you’re not. Just—just be careful. Please.” Gabriel’s look on his face is sincere, and Castiel knows he’s trying to mask his worry.

“I will. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine,” he says again. He knows his words don’t convince his brother, but he turns to leave anyways. When Castiel emerges from the Lounge, Dean is standing with his bandmates, talking and laughing. Dean sees him and walks up to him, a grin still painted on his face.

“Hey, I should have mentioned to you before you went inside that your brother and friend are welcome to come out too,” he says to Castiel. There is a van in front of the Lounge that everyone starts to walk towards. Castiel follows Dean, who offers the opened door to him first before following him in.

To call it a van is a lie, it’s a shuttle van—one you would get at an airport, and there’s easily already twelve people inside. Castiel sits next to the window on the left towards the back of the van and Dean sits next to him, their thighs flush. More people get in.

“It’s okay,” Castiel assures him nervously, but lies when he says, “My brother has to work tomorrow, so.”

Dean nods. “And you? What do you do?”

The people getting in settle themselves, and the van lurches forward. Dean is passed a beer by someone in front of him and he takes a swig of it and offers it to Castiel. Castiel doesn’t drink beer but if it’s as close to Dean’s lips as he’s going to get, he takes it. He makes sure not to make a face as he swallows.

“I’m a student at Emily Carr. I paint,” he answers.

They drive underneath Granville Bridge and make their way down 3rd Avenue, where they turn left on Burrard Street.

“Oh yeah? That’s cool. What do you paint?”

“Pictures.”

Dean barks out a laugh. “No, I mean of what?”

Castiel is thankful for the darkness of the van because he can feel the heat rising to his cheeks.

“Oh. Mostly landscapes,” he answers. “Well right now we’re doing still-life paintings. So it’s whatever we want, as long as it’s from still-life.”

“What’s still-life?” Dean asks, actually seeming interested.

“Basically, it’s just painting what’s in front of you. I bought some fake flowers to paint. I would prefer real ones, but since I’m not working on it every day, I don’t want them to die before I finish it.”

“That makes sense.”

Castiel nods.

The person sitting next to Dean suddenly shoves sideways and Castiel is squished between Dean and the window, his thigh nearly in Dean’s lap and Dean laughs, putting his left arm on the back of the chair to give them more room between each other. Dean takes his right arm and pushes back at the guy, and then there’s a girl on top of the guy who shoved them, making out with him in the most repulsive way Castiel has ever seen. Dean moves a little closer to Castiel and leans in.

“Sorry about that, I hope you don’t mind this.”

Castiel breathes. “It’s fine.”

“Did you want another drink?” Dean offers his beer again.

“Sure.” This time Castiel only pretends to drink, but still gets a buzz from knowing Dean had his lips on it. He hands it back to Dean who takes another drink. He watches as his lips envelope the tip of bottle and how his tongue slips inside to stop the flow. Castiel shifts in his seat.

“Are you comfortable?” Dean asks.

“Yes. I’m fine,” Castiel clears his throat, suddenly becoming tight.

“We’re almost there,” Dean assures him.

Castiel focuses on the music playing on the speakers taps his fingers on his lap. Dean starts to sing along quietly, and Castiel feels like it’s only for him to hear. He smiles out the window, hiding how good this makes him feel, despite how anxious he is. Castiel doesn’t know the song enough to sing along, so he hums to himself.

They’ve been traveling down 16th Avenue for a long time, Castiel only just notices as the van starts to slow down. They turn right on Trimble Street, and Castiel realizes that he hasn’t been to this part of the city before. It makes him nervous but he doesn’t let it show. They turn left and pull into a residential area, coming to a stop in front a modest house. It’s in a nice part of a quaint neighbourhood and it somehow eases Castiel’s anxiety.

The person closest to the door handles drags open the sliding doors and they all file out. Dean gets out before Castiel and waits for him outside the van. They walk up to Benny’s house and Castiel fidgets with his hands. Dean talks with the people walking up with them and laughs at something they said. Castiel smiles at Dean’s laugh and walks into the house.

Everyone seats themselves at either the couch or the table, drinks are being poured and Castiel doesn’t know what to do with himself. He follows Dean into the basement, where there are already people there. If this is a small party, Castiel isn’t sure he wants to see a big one. There’s a pool table where beer bottles rest against its ledges; there is cigarette smoke along with what is undoubtedly weed hanging in the air; there is a large stereo system in the corner playing loud music; girls dance with each other and grind against guys; there is a drum set in the other corner opposite the stereo where some people are banging around on.

“Hey hey!” Dean yells. “Respect the equipment, alright? She’s not new.”

The guys stop and stand around, seemingly bored.

Dean leads them to a set of couches that look worn out and well used. He sits against the armrest and pats the cushion next to him. He pulls out another joint and Castiel sits next to him. He looks around the basement where there must easily be twenty people, if not more. Castiel has a hard time counting them.

“There’s a lot of people here,” he notes to Dean who takes a drag of his joint and hands it to Castiel.

“You kidding me? Hardly anyone is here.” Castiel raises his eyebrows and inhales. As he passes it back to Dean, their fingers brush together. Castiel looks up and meets Dean’s eyes that are soft and red around the edges. He can only assume his look the same. He looks at Dean’s mouth when Dean licks his lips. He then realizes that their hands are still touching and he hasn’t let go of the joint. He clears his throat and looks away, placing his hands into his lap.

Dean grunts and takes another long drag. He passes it back to Castiel and leans against the back of the couch, his arm resting on the cushion behind Castiel’s shoulders. Dean sighs out his high and closes his eyes. Castiel finishes off the joint and places it in the ashtray on the coffee table, then leans back into the couch. His head is spinning, and he’s actually enjoying it. Dean passes him a beer and Castiel drinks it without really paying much attention as to where it came from. The music is loud and banging inside Castiel’s head, he nods back and forth and leans back further, his head suddenly touching Dean’s arm and he freezes. He takes a drink of his beer and looks over at Dean, who’s talking to someone sitting on the armrest. Dean hasn’t moved away from him yet, so maybe it’s okay?

“—and this is Castiel,” Dean says, pulling Castiel away from his thoughts. He looks up and sees the person Dean was talking to and realizes that it’s Charlie.

“Cas,” he decides to correct, holding out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Cas. I’m Charlie.” She grabs his hand and shakes it lightly.

Dean’s arm is still behind him and it sears into Castiel’s skin. The people playing pool shout as one team eventually wins, and the rest of the basement cheers along with them. He takes another drink and finishes off his beer, the buzz undeniable and he looks around the room, trying to figure out where to put his empty bottle, but holds it a little while longer instead. He catches Dean’s eyes and Dean smiles at him. It’s a low smile, almost secretive.

Dean sits up and removes his arm from behind Castiel, and Cas suddenly feels a pang of loss. He leans forwards, resting his elbows on his knees and rolls the empty beer bottle between his two hands; Dean moves himself closer to him, trailing his arm behind Castiel’s back and rests his hand against his hip. Castiel is frozen—not that he wants to move much anyways. Their knees brush, and Dean finishes off his own beer before setting it on the coffee table. He takes his newly empty hand and traces Castiel’s knee with it. Castiel is almost afraid to look at him, but at the same time he is terrified to wake up and it all be a dream. He sets his beer bottle on the table next to Dean’s and leans into Dean’s touch.

He slowly looks up, and finds Dean looking at him. The hand at Castiel’s hips rubs small circles into his rumpled shirt, and all that Castiel can think of is how badly he wants to take it off. He opens his mouth to say something, but he can’t even find the words.

Dean leans in to his ear and whispers lowly, “Do you want to come with me?” Castiel sucks in a breath and swallows. He nervously rubs his palms on his thighs, and licks his lips. His mouth is dry and now he wishes he had something to drink. He realizes that he needs to answer Dean, instead of looking like an ass.

He nods. He swallows again and says, “Yes.”

Dean takes Castiel’s hand and pulls him up. The room is spinning—but it’s a good spin. It’s a high Castiel has never felt before, and it makes him nervous but excited at the same time. Dean pulls him gently along through the crowd of people in the basement. They walk down a hallway and Dean pulls out a key from his pocket and unlocks a door to a bedroom. It’s only lit briefly from the light in the hallway, and when Dean closes the door, it’s dark again. The only light is coming from the window and the streetlamp outside. Castiel can only see Dean’s figure, but can make out the freckles as Dean gets closer. Dean starts unbuttoning Castiel’s shirt, and Castiel grabs his glasses that are hanging in the opening, and holds them. He watches as Dean undresses him, his breathing unsteady and nervous. Castiel lets out a shuddering breath as Dean pulls his shirt down over his shoulders, his fingers trailing down Castiel’s arms, and Castiel pulls out of the sleeves, still holding his glasses, unsure where to put them. Dean tosses Castiel’s shirt off somewhere in the room, and places his hands on either side of his waist. He brings himself impossibly closer to Castiel before slowly tracing the shapes of Castiel’s torso with his large hands. He gently pushes Cas backwards, until the back of Cas’ knees are touching the bed, and Castiel sits. Dean quickly pulls off his own shirt and throws it behind him. He takes a hand and places it under Castiel’s chin, making him to look up. He leans down and brushes his lips lightly against Castiel’s cheek, their noses bumping. Castiel’s breath stutters slightly and he closes his eyes. Dean moves his mouth over and inches towards Castiel’s.

Castiel leans into the touch and opens his mouth, where Dean finally connects them together, closing with a sigh. Dean’s hands instinctively go to either side of Cas’ face, and Castiel places his hands on Dean’s hips, looping his thumbs through Dean’s belt loops. Dean kisses him softly, but eager. He suddenly surges forward and Castiel is on his back, Dean crawling inelegantly over him; their lips hardly have a moment apart. Castiel’s legs hang over the edge of the bed. He sucks in a breath when Dean moves from his lips, and down to his jaw—sucking into his neck and licking down his throat.

Dean’s legs are on either side of Cas’ body, and he presses himself against Castiel’s hip and Castiel can feel how hard he is. Castiel rolls his hips upwards and Dean groans. Dean comes up from kissing his neck to suck at Castiel’s bottom lip. Their tongues meet and Castiel tries not to moan, but fails, his hands trembling as they run up Dean’s chest. Dean pulls away slightly at the hips, taking a hand to unbutton Cas’ belt and jeans. Cas takes this time to kiss Dean’s jaw, trailing it back to his ear and he sucks and nips at Dean’s earlobe.

“Fuck,” Dean grunts.

He manages to undo Castiel’s jeans and he slips a hand beneath the band to palm Castiel’s cock over his boxer briefs. Castiel opens his mouth and leans upwards into the touch. His own hands roam Dean’s body until he finds the band of his jeans, where he starts to unbutton it hastily. His hand finds Dean’s hard cock and he wraps his hand around it, still covered by his boxers. Dean’s lips find his again and they kiss and touch each other, and it’s honestly hottest Castiel has ever felt. Suddenly Dean is wrapping an arm around the underside of Castiel’s leg and lifting him up, moving Castiel further up the bed.

Castiel lays beneath Dean’s body, a hand in his pants; he’s touching Dean, and Dean _likes_ it. He moans against Castiel’s lips. Dean brings his hand to slip underneath the band of his boxers and suddenly Cas is electrified. Dean’s hot calloused hand wraps around his cock and Castiel shudders, noticeably. Dean quirks up a smile and kisses Cas again.

Dean lets go for a moment to pull at Castiel’s jeans and boxers, taking them off. It’s the most exposed Castiel has ever felt. But he doesn’t want to stop; he watches as Dean takes off his own, standing naked before him. He crawls back over Cas and kisses up his chest. He touches a hand to Castiel’s cheek and kisses him softly, lowering himself onto Cas’ body. Their cocks brush and Castiel pushes himself up into Dean, stuttering a moan. Dean leans on his elbow and takes his free hand down to their cocks, jerking at Castiel’s slowly.

Suddenly, the door opens and someone asks Dean where Charlie is.

“Fuck off! Can’t you see I’m busy?” Dean hollers back, not caring that they can see his bare ass. Castiel is thankful that he is hidden by Dean’s body.

Dean doesn’t pay them much attention as they close the door.

“Sorry, I thought I locked it,” he says gruffly.

“It’s okay,” Castiel replies, kissing up into Dean’s neck. Every part of him feels like he should stop, leave, and never come back. But that all goes away when Dean sighs and starts jacking him again.

Cas takes his hand and touches Dean’s cock lightly and Dean moans.

“Yeah, fuck. Come on Cas.”

Hearing his name on Dean’s wrecked breath has his dick twitching in Dean’s hand. He pushes up and kisses Dean hard, causing Dean to falter backwards, but he doesn’t stop. They kiss hot and wet, moving up to knee on the bed. Dean brings his other hand to thread through Castiel’s hair and he gently tugs, making Cas hiss.

“God,” Castiel says against the corner of Dean’s mouth.

“God got nothin’ to do with it sweet cheeks, it’s me you’re talking to.”

Castiel pulls away to see Dean smirking and biting his bottom lip. Castiel firms his grip on Dean’s cock and he tugs him quickly, watching Dean roll his head back and his eyes close. Castiel kisses his throat.

 _“God,_ fuck,” Dean says hoarsely.

“I thought God had nothing to do with it,” Castiel says into Dean’s neck. Dean hums a laugh.

“Fuck, this is so hot Cas.” Dean pulls Castiel’s head up and kisses him, their tongues sliding together.

Dean’s hand quickens and his hips start moving into Castiel’s fist. They soon start to become erratic. Castiel is breathing heavily, sucking at Dean’s lips, the heat building tight inside his stomach. Dean’s hand is tight on his cock, and he can’t stop the noises he begins to make.

Dean’s thrusting hips become uneven and he moans into Castiel’s mouth. It’s seriously so hot and Castiel can feel himself edging closer. Dean’s hips stutter, and his mouth opens against Castiel’s; there is a hot splash of come against Castiel’s abdomen. Dean stifles a grunt as he comes on Cas’ hand. Castiel breathes faster, his dick hot in Dean’s hand and he can feel Dean’s come sliding down his body and he comes instantly, his mouth hanging open in a silent scream. His eyes squeeze shut as Dean jacks him.

As he finishes, Dean kisses his open mouth, languid and deep. Castiel collapses backwards onto the bed, spent and exhausted. Dean crawls over him and grabs tissues from his bedside table and turns his lamp on. He cleans himself up and passes Castiel a few clean tissues. Cas wipes himself up and Dean takes the tissues and tosses them over into his trash bin. Castiel notices his glasses on the floor, but can’t be bothered by them at the moment.

Dean crawls over and lays next to him. He rests his hands behind his head. It’s quiet, aside from the music still playing outside Dean’s room. He can feel his body pulling him towards sleep, and he tries to keep himself awake because he is _not_ falling asleep in Dean Winchester’s bed.

“You can stay, if you like,” Dean mumbles, practically reading his mind. Dean pulls his naked body underneath the covers and faces Cas.

Castiel rubs his eyes and feels his contacts slide. He sighs.

“I have to take my contacts out,” he says.

“The bathroom is right across the hall.”

Castiel gets up stiffly and pulls his boxer briefs back on. He finds his jeans and pulls his contact lens case out. He picks up his glasses from off the floor and walks out of Dean’s room. The party outside is still going strong, and Cas walks across the hall into the bathroom where he takes a much needed piss. He washes his hands and takes his contacts out, giving them a quick cleanse. He puts his glasses back on and goes back into Dean’s room.

Dean is looking through his phone, his finger scrolling up as he reads, his eyes squinting at the screen. Castiel remembers Gabriel and grabs his jeans from off the floor again, pulling out his own phone from his back pocket.

_3 missed calls._

_7 texts messages._

He opens his phone and sends a quick _I’m fine, Gabriel. Staying at Dean’s friend’s tonight. I’ll be home tomorrow_. He locks his phone and tosses it back onto his jeans. He crawls into Dean’s bed and Dean turns off the bedside lamp.

“Thanks for coming out tonight,” Dean says into the darkness. “I had lots of fun.”

“Yeah,” Cas says gruffly. “Me too.”

Castiel stares up at the ceiling as he lays next to Dean, and wonders what the fuck he’s going to tell his brother tomorrow.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think of _Beneath The Spotlight_ in the comments below!
> 
> Thank you for reading!! :)


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